Religious Freedom in the Near East, Northern Africa and the Former Soviet States

Front Cover
Nova Publishers, 2002 - 237 pages
Human rights, of which the freedom of religion is a crticial componenet, are promised by most governments on Planet Earth. But promises are promises, are promises. In real life, religious liberty is far from a universal fact. This book surveys the countries of Africa based on U S State Department reports and is augmented by a current bibliography and a useful index.
 

Contents

Algeria
3
Bahrain
7
Egypt
11
Iran
21
Iraq
31
Israel
39
Including Areas Subject to the Jurisdiction of the Palestinian Authority
46
Jordan
53
Religious Freedom in the Former Soviet States
121
Azerbaijan
123
Belarus
128
Estonia
136
Georgia
139
Kazakhstan
146
Kyrgyzstan
153
Latvia
158

Kuwait
61
Lebanon
67
Libya
71
Morocco
74
Oman
80
Qatar
83
Saudi Arabia
87
Syria
94
Tunisia
98
Turkey
103
United Arab Emirates
110
Western Sahara
114
Yemen
116
Lithuania
162
Russia
168
Tajikistan
186
Turkmenistan
191
Ukraine
197
Uzbekistan
205
Special Bibliography
217
Bibliography
219
Indexes by Author Title and Subject
225
Author Index
227
Title Index
229
Subject Index
231
Copyright

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Page 1 - Though the Constitution does not specifically prohibit discrimination based on religious belief, the Government generally respects religious freedom in practice; however, there were some restrictions. There was no change in the status of respect for religious freedom during the period covered by this report. Islam is the only state-sanctioned religion, and the law limits the practice of other faiths, including prohibiting public assembly for purposes of practicing a faith other than Islam. However,...
Page 5 - SECTION I. RELIGIOUS DEMOGRAPHY The country has a total area of 231 square miles, and its population is approximately 670,000. The citizen population is 98 percent Muslim; Jews and Christians constitute the remaining 2 percent. Muslim citizens belong to the Shi'a and Sunni branches of Islam, with Shi'a constituting as much as two-thirds of the indigenous population. Foreigners, mostly from South Asia and other Arab countries, constitute approximately 38 percent of the total population. Roughly half...
Page 10 - Government attempts to control them legally for the stated purpose of combating extremists. The Government appoints and pays the salaries of the imams who lead prayers in mosques and monitors their sermons; however, it does not similarly contribute to the building, repair, or funding of Christian churches.
Page 5 - There was no change in the status of respect for religious freedom during the period covered by this report. In the past, the Government did not tolerate political dissent, including from religious groups or leaders; however, by February 14, 2001, the Amir had pardoned and released all remaining political prisoners and religious leaders. The Government continues to subject both Sunni and Shi'a Muslims to governmental control and monitoring, and there is some government discrimination against Shi'a...

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